BC Ferries

The ferry Island Sky unloads in Saltery Bay, B.C. The vessel, part of a $1 billion investment in boats by BC Ferries since 2003, cost $57 million and was built in British Columbia. The Island Sky was overbudget by $10 million and eight months behind, other new vessels have come in on time and under budget, officials say. (JOSH FARLEY | KITSAP SUN)

Passengers enjoy the sun aboard the BC Ferries’ Island Sky. The $57 million vessel began sailing between Saltery Bay and Earls Cove on the Sunshine Coast in 2009. BC Ferries has invested $1 billion into its vessel fleet since the system became a heavily-regulated independent company in 2003, using its profits to float bonds for boat construction. (JOSH FARLEY | KITSAP SUN)

Passengers aboard the BC Ferry Queen of Coquitlam mill about in both the onboard shop and eatery. Food and catering revenues total about $80 million in the system, making the ferries comprise the fifth-largest restaurant in the province. (JOSH FARLEY | KITSAP SUN)

The North Island Princess rumbles toward Texada Island, seen in the background, from Powell River on the Sunshine Coast. The boat is one of many smaller runs that the British Columbian government still subsidizes, despite BC Ferries’ transition in 2003 to a heavily-regulated private company. (JOSH FARLEY | KITSAP SUN)

A rider waits for the Queen of Coquitlam to set sail from the Sunshine Coast to North Vancouver. The boat, built in 1976, is capable of carrying 360 cars and almost 1,500 people. (JOSH FARLEY | KITSAP SUN)

Quartermaster Clive Openshaw operates the British Columbia ferry Island Sky along the Saltery Bay to Earls Cove route. The $57 million boat was built in British Columbia, though other new boats have been constructed abroad. The boat was built with what’s known as a “Z-Drive,” which allows its engines to pivot rather than using a traditional rudder. (JOSH FARLEY | KITSAP SUN)

BC Ferries Capt. Bruce Hunter updates the Island Sky’s handwritten log as Achim Ruether steers the newly commissioned boat. The $57 million vessel began sailing between Saltery Bay and Earls Cove on the Sunshine Coast in 2009. BC Ferries has invested $1 billion into its vessel fleet since the system became a heavily-regulated independent company in 2003, using its profits to float bonds for boat construction. (JOSH FARLEY | KITSAP SUN)

The Island Sky nears its landing at Saltery Bay. One of the BC Ferries’ newest vessels, it cost $57 million to build and was part of a $1 billion investment in the overall ferry system since it became a heavily-regulated private company in 2003. (JOSH FARLEY | KITSAP SUN)

The Queen of Burnaby arrives in Powell River, B.C. The ferry crosses the Straight of Georgia from Vancouver Island to the northern Sunshine Coast. The government subsidizes the run, because it doesn’t make enough in fares to recoup the cost to operate it. (JOSH FARLEY | KITSAP SUN)

The bridge of the Island Sky, one of BC Ferries’ newest vessels. By becoming a heavily-regulated private company, the BC ferry system has turned to marketing, overseas ship production and three profitable ferry routes to generate additional money for the system. It has used the funds to invest in $1 billion in new vessels and improvements, reducing the average age of its fleet from in the thirties to the twenties. (JOSH FARLEY | KITSAP SUN)

Passengers unload from the Queen of Burnaby, a BC Ferry that crosses the Straight of Georgia between Little River on Vancouver Island and Powell River on the Sunshine Coast. Built in 1965, it can carry 192 cars and more than 900 people. BC Ferries, which operates 1,000 miles’ worth of ferry routes, became a heavily-regulated private company in 2003. (JOSH FARLEY | KITSAP SUN)

Riders prepare for the Queen of Coquitlam — departing Langdale, on the Sunshine Coast, for Horseshoe Bay, near Vancouver — to set sail. BC Ferries, which carries a comparable number of vehicles and passengers as the Washington State Ferries, was partially privatized in 2004. (JOSH FARLEY | KITSAP SUN)

A couple takes in the sweeping view from the Island Sky ferry as it rumbles along from Saltery Bay to Earls Cove on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia. The ferry, which began sailing in 2009, holds 125 vehicles and up to 600 passengers. (JOSH FARLEY | KITSAP SUN)

Quartermaster Clive Openshaw steers the ferry Island Sky along its route from Saltery Bay to Earls Cove on the Sunshine Coast. The route, and all others but three in the BC ferry system, is subsidized by the provincial government. While it brought in $6 million in 2009, it cost $13.7 million to operate. (JOSH FARLEY | KITSAP SUN)

A bald eagle sits perched atop a bumper at the ferry dock in Little River, B.C. British Columbia’s ferry system, partially privatized since 2004, covers about 1,000 nautical miles of territory from the Queen Charlotte Islands to near Victoria. (JOSH FARLEY | KITSAP SUN)